Height of Ceiling Fans

[Set Square]

SWMBO fancies one of these combined fan and light jobbies over our bed - in anticipation of hot summer nights! The ones she has in mind have an overall diameter of about one metre.

There are several in the latest Argos catalogue - with a footnote which says that the distance from the floor to the blades "needs to be" (presumably at least rather than exactly) 2.3 metres. The overall height of these units is about 45cms - and I estimate from the pictures that the bottom of the fan is about 2/3 of the way down (say 30 cms). This means that in order to comply with this 2.3 metre requirement, the ceiling height would need to be at least 2.6 metres - or about 8'6" in real money!

Would anyone care to hazard a guess as to where this 2.3 metre requirement comes from. Is there a regulation to this effect, or is it just a suggestion/recommendation? Clearly, common sense is required in order to avoid decapitation - but if a ceiling height of 2.6 metres is *really* required, most modern houses ain't going to qualify!

My bedroom ceiling height is about 2.35 metres - so there would be a clearance of just over 2 metres, and I'm only 1.85 metres tall! In addition, if it is installed in place of the existing light fitting, the blades will be completely over the bed - thus reducing still further the risk of walking into them.

All words of wisdom greatfully received.

[Bob Minchin]

Not sure if this is wisdom but I have these in two bedrooms with standard

2.3m ceiling heights. I shortened the tube as much as possible and also ran another wire down the tube to the light allowing the wall switch to work the lamps and the pull cored on the fan to switch the fan via a permanent live connection from the ceiling rose. I am 6 foot 2 and my son is 6 foot 4 and we have not been hit by the blades yet!

The fans are very effective on hot sultry nights and left on the lowest speed are virtually silent and whilst moving sufficient air to cool, don't seem to cause a draught.

Do it - I don't think you will regret it

Bob

[John Laird]

I don't think you'd want to be able to reach up and put your hand in it too easily.

[Lurch]

I don't think I'd like to lie down on the drive while someone drove over my head, so I won't. Your point is? ..

SJW A.C.S. Ltd.

[geoff]

In message , Set Square writes

I saw someone do that a few years ago, dancing on a table. Quite a serious injury as it was a "proper" ceiling fan

[Bob Mannix]

requirement

Surely decapitation is *always* a serious injury? Never seen one that wasn't ;o)

[Velvet]

Yeah, I'm sure it's specced to stop people being able to reach up and put their hands into the blades (like I can here, and I'm only 5'4). I've got two ceiling fans, regardless. One is a flush mount to the ceiling, the other (unfortunately I didn't realise this till it was almost completely installed) didn't have hte option to flush-mount, depsite looking identical to the original one! So I have one of each. Neither are a particular problem when running. The original one is much quieter than the second downrod, but due to a different motor I believe, since is that sort of noise when on the slow speed.

The one in the current bedroom on a down-rod is also over the bed, but partially. It replaces the existing light fitting. I hung (as is my girly penchant) a small wooden mobile from the light fitting, which discourages me or anyone else from walking under the light cluster and hitting their heads on that. It's fairly common sense not to stick your hands in the air or bounce too hard on the bed if the fan's running :-)

I would make sure anyone that might be unaware of the fan's low height that enters the room (cleaners, guests, children) understood that it was low enough to do serious damage if people/things get into the blades. You might still find yourself liable, having fitted it contrary to the guidelines, if someone *does* do something stupid and suffers injury, though.

I'm in a rented place, so mine will be converted back to standard ceiling light fitting when I leave - they'll be coming with me, cos I'm a) not going to leave them when I put them in at my expense, and b) don't want subsequent tenants hounding me for compensation through their stupidity around it.

Velvet

[John Laird]

Over your head.

[Tim Mitchell]

In article , Velvet writes

They don't go all that fast... if you got hit by the blades (e.g. putting your hands up in the air) it would hurt but I wouldn't have thought that serious injury could be caused. The manufacturers would be selling them with fitted guards if that was the case.

Has anybody tried this ?!

[PoP]

Depends. I have a vision of IMM's head being removed from his shoulders and still managing to deliver tripe.

PoP

Sending email to my published email address isn't guaranteed to reach me.

[Toby]

Seen some girl get her wrist swiped by the tip of a blade while dancing about on someone's shoulders in a grotty club once. Off to A&E in an ambulance. The following day a surprising number of people discovered tiny spots of blood on their clothes. HAd quite long blades so the tip velocity must have been quite high. Fans got replaced by aircon fairly soon after I think.

A domestic fan looks pretty harmless as the blades are slow and short, but it may be worth sticking a pencil in just to see if it can snap it or just knock it over.

[Velvet]

Hmm. I'm pretty sure both my fans would easily chop a pencil in half, though possibly close run thing whether I can hang on to it tight enough to do this. Possibly not on low speed, but on medium or high, I'm pretty sure it'd do very nasty things to hands/arms/heads etc.

I've used fingers to slow down the blades ONCE THE FAN IS TURNED OFF and ONCE THEY HAVE SLOWED CONSIDERABLY - I am in NO way suggesting anyone else attempt this. Even at less rpm than the 'driven' blades on slow, they carry a fair amount of momentum. I'm pretty sure if I got it wrong I'd get very rapped knuckles (imagine a good hard rap with a stout bit of wood), and possibly a broken finger or two.

It pays to respect ceiling fans if you're getting any bit of your anatomy near them at all.

Velvet

[geoff]

In message , Bob Mannix writes

I dunno, the government's full of headless chickens atm - it doesn't seem to stop them

now, what's the url for that cat caught in the fan video ?

[Lobster]

[Steve Walker]

Well I have an archway in the bedroom and the number of times that I accidentally punch the underside of it when pushing my arm up through the sleeve of my shirt is amazing. It's so easy to stand just a foot too far from my normal spot for getting dressed without thinking about it. I wouldn't like to do the same with a fan that's mounted too low.

Steve W

[Brian S Gray]

As a teenager I cut my hand badly when I pretended to bowl a new cricket ball under a glass lampshade - and I suspect a fan could do significant damage to ones arm & hand eg when putting a shirt on while thinking of the day ahead.

[Lurch]

If I was to think of what the day ahead might bring whilst putting on a shirt I'd probably do the job properly and hurl myself out of the bedroom window, more chance of doing it right then! ..

SJW A.C.S. Ltd.

[Jim Michaels]

I'm 6'4" and have managed to put a hand into several domestic ceiling fans over the years with surprise being the major outcome.

Remove SPAMX from email address

[Huge]

I'm 6'3" and regularly bang my arms on things while putting on sweaters - a process my wife describes as "flailing".